A Lesson Not Learned

By: Al | January 7th, 2009

We’re out of the Copa del Rey. On paper we really aren’t, but we’re done. Simple as that.

Two times in a row we lose to Barça? Not surprising. They were definitely the better team but I’m not going to talk about how much better they were, as this is the wrong blog for that. If you’re familiar with that crazy Barca team that you’ve seen all season, they were definitely there yesterday.

However, I did see a new Atlético squad yesterday, one that played like children and fouled the hell out of the opposition. Different than the squad that played Barcelona a few months ago. Then, they were helpless and yesterday they were just reckless.

The same problem happened this time just like against Valencia. We were “unfortunate” and “got into the way of greatness”. If this happens so often, are we to blame for sucking against superiority? Yes, yes, and yes.

The lineup was well chosen even without Aguero who was rested for the match (and now has pharyngitis):

Coupet – Seitaridis, Perea, Heitinga, Pernía – Paulo Assunçao, Maniche, Maxi, Sima -; Sinama Pongolle, Forlán

But the players were too damn clumsy for it to even matter. The first Messi goal pretty much ended the match there. Silly fouls and desperation became all the rage (Mexican syndrome? I’m looking at you, Aguirre) and the only response, a header from Ujfalusi, wasn’t enough for the team to prevent Messi to smash in a third. Heitinga’s foul on Messi wasn’t anything new either, as he can be a klutz inside the opposition’s box and can trip an opponent like no other, just watch the Madrid derby again.

I’m not saying that Atlético didn’t try, because they did at times. Maniche did have some decent shots on target that were no problem for Barça’s crazy-ass keeper, and Simao tried his butt off to create chances. Sinama even scored a goal that was ruled offside. There were just too many con’s to push aside the pro’s. It was a bit pathetic to see players like Sinama and Maniche pull stupid moves like that against the opposition. They know better than that, it’s called professionalism. Who the hell uses both elbows to keep the ball away from an opponent anyway, Maniche?

You can just watch the video and it summarizes the match very well.

Atlético showed their true colors today. In a way, I’m glad that they’ve lost these two past matches so they can properly place their hand on the ground and push themselves back up. However, I would think that winning one point against all the big teams would be enough to teach the team a lesson. Being knocked out of the Copa del Rey isn’t the end of the world. Atlético isn’t finished and there’s plenty to play for.

The return leg next week will be a mixed bag. Aguirre will certainly field a full-strength squad to prove to everyone how serious the team is about making a comeback, but it won’t be enough against a team like Barcelona. If they throw Messi onto the field, it’s already over. Barça’s job next week will be to prevent us from scoring three goals and probably score a goal for themselves for the hell of it. I’m not Guardiola but I know that they will want to preserve this lead as best as possible.

Blah screw it, it’s done for.

Time to sack Aguirre? Atlético fans are already calling for his head but it’s definitely the players’ fault for this loss. Who could’ve saved the team? I don’t think anybody could, the only thing missing was a lack of balls. A more inspirational talk couldn’t have saved this team from Messi either. Maybe he could’ve taught the team not to lose their cool.

There’s no crisis. Being in 5th place and three points from 3rd again isn’t really crisis material. These are surprisingly one of our best years of the decade but with the intentions of the club to grow into a powerhouse, something that the big cheeses say all the time, we’re on the wrong path. Perhaps a lack of maturity might be the cause of these results.

What is the lesson not learned? To grow the hell up.